Mirror
by valbino
Summary: SasukexOC. They will save each other from what they fear. Complete.
1. Piqued

AN:Even though I .. ah.. really really don't like Sasuke all that much, this Story idea's kind of ... old-ish, and was originally written for one of my friends almost a year ago. 8D So yeah.

Plus, there aren't any good SasukexOCs out there, or they're all humor. WHY ARE THEY ALL FUCKING HUMOR FICS!?(I started one, and the writing style was kind of intolerable. The OC seemed rather like a self-insert, too. 8l AND A MARY SUE DAMMIT. )I also really really like Arashiri, as an OC. (Even though I've been working on plans to flesh Maigo/Agari Arashi out really well, I like this OC a bit more for some reason.) AND HUSH YOU, I WAS LAZY WHEN COMING UP WITH OC NAMES.

A bit on cursed seals: I'm not sure which names have and haven't been used for seals(except gaia, earth, and heaven, I think.), and Hiraishin means, roughly, 'lightning rod'. 8DDDD

* * *

Sasuke waited as the doors to Orochimaru's inner sanctum opened millimetre by millimetre. Some part inside him screeched in irritation. He ignored it. Orochimaru had an important mission for him, and somebody besides Kabuto as an accomplice, Sasuke thought Orochimaru had hinted at.

When, finally, he was able to step in, Orochimaru was seated in his throne, a thoughtful expression on his mildly reptilian face.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun. I asked Kabuto to find somebody that needed field experience. And what he found was wonderful!" Orochimaru closed his yellow snake eyes and smiled.

Sasuke found it was mildly creepy, but didn't feel like making any snide remarks. Taking a deep breath, he was about to ask what was so fucking wonderful—mildly snarky, he realized, but no way around it—about this person, when Kabuto burst through one of the side entrances.

"Orochimaru-sama! Here she is!" Was that a smirk on glasses' face?

With that, Kabuto turned, the light glaring off his glasses (hence Sasuke's annoying nickname), and tugged on a previously unnoticed chain. Sasuke watched as somebody shuffled out, arms and ankles bound by heavy cuffs.

Orochimaru smirked a ghastly smirk at Sasuke's confusion. "You see, Sasuke-kun, Arashiri here has a slight problem with self-control. I had nearly forgotten about her before Kabuto suggested it; in fact, she was one of my earlier experiments with sealing techniques."

"Which seal?" was all Sasuke asked, quickly settling his face back into the usual mask of neutrality.

"Hiraishin."

Lightning seal. Sasuke had heard about it every once in awhile. Supposedly one of the earlier seals, only three or four people had survived it. And only one escaped execution. The seal had been named so because of the element it affected, and how the person drew chakra from both the seal and others.

So this was the one that had escaped execution, eh, Sasuke thought, giving her a brief once-over. Expression; she looked like the waterworks could start at any moment. A short mop of black hair, a few long, thin braids, extremely long sleeves on short robe, black shorts, black sandals, black shin guards, pale skin. Instead of a thick rope belt, however, she sported a cord wrapped around the belt at her waist, and tied in an intricate, loopy knot.

Not all that impressive.

Kabuto cleared his throat and snapped Sasuke out of his reverie.

"Kabuto, take her bonds off."

"A-are you..."

"I'm quite certain."

Reluctantly, Kabuto turned around, stepped over the dropped chain-link, and bent over to unseal Arashiri's bonds. That done, he cautiously backed away. Who knew what she could do?

Sasuke rolled his eyes a bit at Kabuto's blatant display of fear. What could there be to possibly instill that kind of fear in somebody like Kabuto? Even Orochimaru seemed to look slightly...nervous. Really, was this the survivor of the tales he had heard, this pitiful, sad, miserable excuse for a kunoichi?

"Sasuke-kun, I'm sure you would like to know what your and Arashiri's mission is about, correct?" Orochimaru broke the silence.

"Hn." Sasuke gave his usual noncommittal reply.

"You and Arashiri, your charge," Orochimaru rasped, "Will head over to the Lightning region to take care of a few hotheaded informants rumored to have decided to give away our position. This scroll has their names and contact details. Shouldn't be too hard, even with you watching your back at every moment."

"When will we leave?" Sasuke ignored Kabuto's nervous chattering and protests.

"Today, if you wish." Orochimaru shrugged.

"Very well. I would prefer to leave now." Sasuke glanced over at Arashiri, who seemed to perk up ever so slightly at the suggestion.

The reptilian man sniggered before tossing the aforementioned scroll to Sasuke. "If you can get her out of this room, you may leave now."

Sasuke thought for a moment, and glanced at Arashiri. Her lips had parted a bit, and she was staring at him with a barely hidden desperation. He jerked his head towards the door, and she took a shaky step forward, then another, and another.

As she walked, Sasuke noticed that her sleeves reached a bit past her knees. Why would that be? No matter; Arashiri was standing directly in front of him. She was several centimeters shorter than he, and mouthed something.

It looked like the word 'please.' Over and over. Sasuke closed his eyes and nodded.

"We'll be off, then."


	2. Nightmares

AN: 8D Rating may go down, depends on my mood.

This is really just me trying to write something vaguely angst-ish...? -shotshotshot-

...

OH TEH NOES!! VAL LEFT US OFF WONDERING WHERE SAUCY'S TRAIN OF THOUGHT WENT!! SHE'S SOOO FUCKING HORRID!!

/ritual self mocking.

Sasuke read over the list as he walked ahead of his charge. So far, the girl was completely silent, and seemed to have improved in mood immediately after leaving the complex.

Besides, there was no need to rush.

The mission seemed fairly straightforward. Five names, five addresses, one Kumogakure, and up to a week to complete it. Otogakure was near the borders of Lightning, so the journey would, even at a leisurely pace, take about a day and a half.

He looked back to find that Arashiri had stopped. She was biting her lip, and shifting uncomfortably on the spot.

It was then she finally spoke. "...Are you s-sure that...we're going t-the right way?"

Sasuke stared blankly at her for a moment. Was she questioning the map included with the scroll? Or had she never actually been outside the complex, or even her cell, for a number of years...?

"I'm sure. Do you think you'll be able to keep up if we start hurrying to Kumo?"

"Y-yes..." Her expression regressed back to what it had been when Kabuto first brought her out.

Sasuke felt a twinge of pity. Was she really an uncontrollable monster? Or simply mistreated because of her seal...her seal...her seal...

What did it look like? Hiraishin, Orochimaru had called it. He thought about the shape of his own Heaven seal. A triad of comma-shaped dots. Arashiri's seal could be a lightning symbol, or even a starburst. He would have to get a closer look at it sometime.

Much to his surprise, Arashiri stood to his left while he had been thinking. And so he set off at his usual pace, certain she would have no trouble in keeping up.

--

In the middle of a wooded area, Sasuke stopped. This would be a good place to rest for awhile. He also wasn't completely certain of Arashiri's stamina; it would be better not to risk taxing her possibly drained energy resources.

In the middle of setting up a lean-to, he paused. Arashiri was tugging upward on her sleeves until her fingertips showed; from where he was, he could see how the fingernails were trimmed down to where they couldn't do much else but score the skin. And was that a glint of metal he saw at her wrist? It could simply be the light.

Sasuke watched, fascinated as her hands formed several seals. The sleeves fell back down from her hands with a slow grace. She met his gaze, and looked away.

"I used a genjutsu to keep enemy shinobi f-from finding our camp. It disguises us as just a part of the forest." Her voice was raspy and soft, and Sasuke had to strain to hear it.

"Good. Is there still a chance of being discovered?" Sasuke asked, having a small hope that there wouldn't be a need to have shifts of guarding the area.

"Yes, but only if you knew wh-what you were l-looking for," Arashiri replied almost immediately, probably anticipating the question.

"Hn. Let's get some rest, then."

With that, Sasuke lay down on his unrolled sleeping pallet, waiting until Arashiri was settled in her own before allowing sleep to overtake him.

--

Arashiri awoke from a slightly disturbing dream. She regretted it almost immediately when she took notice of Sasuke tossing and turning. Her own stomach churned with the thought of Sasuke finding out that her nightmares affected more than just her mind, and a pit of fear formed in her stomach.

Trying to ignore it, she crawled over to Sasuke. The glisten of sweat was clearly visible in the patchy moonlight, and occasionally an eye would slip open, revealing a glint of red.

"Sharingan..." She breathed.

That was when Arashiri noticed Sasuke was muttering things. Some of them sounded garbled, but she made out a few individual words.

"N-no...don't...you..."

Her eyes widened. The pit of fear started to gain ground against her better judgment.

"Brother!!" He screamed, over and over. "Brother!!"

She saw the tears trickling down his cheeks, and wondered if she should wake him. Her decision was made for her when Sasuke's eyes snapped open and he sat up, breathing hard.

He took several deep breaths before turning to look at her, Sharingan still activated. Sasuke didn't bother to turn it off, nor did he bother wiping his eyes. What was the point, if she had already seen?

That was when he noticed tears on Arashiri's cheeks, too. She was breathing just as hard as he was. She was shaking. Was it her seal?

"...I...I have...nightmares," She whispered, ending Sasuke's wonderings.

--

They arrived at Kumo at sunrise, pretending that last night's incident didn't affect each other at all. It was time to find somewhere to stay. However, Sasuke was slightly mesmerized by Kumo's slightly alien architecture, even barely stepping into the gates, and paused to take it in.

The buildings were either extremely tall or extremely short. Each building had walls made from a seamless, plastic or ceramic-looking material. It was so seamless that he couldn't even try to differentiate between where windows and walls met.

He glanced at Arashiri, whose facial expression implied that she was in a similar state to him.

"Let's find our inn." Sasuke broke the silence.

"Y-yeah.." She nodded.

With Sasuke in the lead, they headed down the least populated street to begin their search.

--

Arashiri was grateful of the privacy of the small bathroom in their room. So grateful, in fact, that she didn't bother to conceal her joy, letting out a small giggle at it when she saw that the door locked. It didn't matter that Sasuke had looked at her oddly; she could bathe in private!

After stripping off her clothing, she stepped in the tub and twisted the handle to the left of the faucet, feeling the water hitting her toes grow warm, then hot. The sensation caused a tingle to run up her legs.

She stood there, staring at the contraption, wondering how to make the thick stream of water go from the faucet to the showerhead above. Then she saw it; a small button between the right and left taps with an 'S' emblazoned on it. She pushed it.

Not five seconds later, she felt hot water stop bombarding her toes and begin to lightly rain down on her back.

It would be a crime not to enjoy this.

--

Sasuke had been thumbing through a fairly dry book on Kumo weather. Apparently, there were storms and monsoons that went in three month cycles, but he kept falling asleep in between sentences.

Why the hell would it take her so long to shower?

However, instead of cycling that through his mind, he decided that a more puzzling question would be 'what sort of nightmares did she have and why did she have them'. It was possible that she had woken up a few minutes before he woke up from his own, and didn't bother, like him, to conceal the pain they caused.

That would be an interesting scenario, to say the least.

Aside from that, the cause of her nightmares could be, most likely, what Orochimaru did to her or her captivity in that cell or her treatment in captivity, or some combination of the three.

Before he got the chance, however, to go more deeply into his theories, there was a burst of steam from the direction of the bathroom, and Arashiri's thin silhouette was visible through the steam, and then the silhouette became her.

The first things Sasuke noticed were the bands of metal around the lower half of her forearms. There were several scratches on them, and he could tell they had been sealed. What purpose would they serve outside defending against enemies? Arashiri, from what he gathered, rarely if ever got to do any actual battling in the field.

Unless...

No...

It couldn't be..

Was that what Orochimaru had meant by 'lacking self-control'?!


	3. Concentration

A/N: Reuploading this chapter 'cause I made a few errors here and there.

000

Sasuke hadn't bothered with doing much else than pulling on a pair of black sweatpants, trying to figure out which of the three maps found in the hotel room would be most up-to-date. The hotel room was warm, and the water clinging to his skin after the shower felt good as it evaporated.

Arashiri sat next to him on the couch(this hotel was fairly cheap and surprisingly well furnished), also studying. Both had agreed not to break the silence unless there was any sort of clue. That was when he found it; a slightly yellowed edge determined the oldest. He mentioned as much to Arashiri.

"I agree," She murmured, carefully running a finger along the yellow-edged map, "This one is the oldest. It is of no use."

Sasuke neatly folded it back up and tossed it to the floor, then returned his gaze to the next map in line on the table. This one had a canvas-y texture. It wasn't even of Kumo, but, rather, of Konoha. Odd.

"S-sasuke-san. Why is there a map of Konoha here in Kumo...?" Arashiri asked, furrowing her brow.

"...I...don't know. But it's pretty much...useless..." Sasuke gritted out, maintaining—if only marginally—his usual calm, simply sliding it off the table.

"So...th-then...it's this map that we'll use?" She gestured to the only remaining map, in fairly good condition. Luckily, it was of Kumo, and seemed to be up-to-date.

"Yes," Sasuke agreed.

For a moment, Sasuke thought a smile flicked briefly across her lips.

Their first target was, conveniently, on the other side of Kumo from the hotel. Map in hand, Sasuke started walking down the nearest sidewalk as Arashiri drug behind. Orochimaru was, of course, right when he said it would be easy. The guy didn't realize what was going on until Sasuke attacked.

After returning to the hotel, Arashiri sat on the couch, pushing off the shin guards and sandals. She needed to relax and get herself under control. The seal was trying to get at Sasuke's vast supply of chakra, and as a result throbbing madly. When Sasuke went into the bathroom to change clothing, she allowed herself to finally grasp onto the Hiraishin seal-a triad of whorls with six branches-placed just above the left side of her clavicle and release the genjutsu concealing it.

She was so absorbed in suppressing the pain, Arashiri didn't notice that Sasuke had already changed back into his black sweats and was staring at her intently. She still didn't notice even when he cleared his throat.

Sasuke had, of course, heard a groan of pain from Arashiri sometime during the first target's kill. He had assumed that she had run into something or that the target had gotten a blow on her. But now, with the way her lips were pressed into a thin line and the way her hand was gripping between her neck and left shoulder...

It had been the Hiraishin seal.

He could tell from the way there was a dull orange glow from between her fingers. He could tell from her agonized expression. There was no time to think; his hand was already forcing chakra into the seal.

"..N-no!" Arashiri mumbled, her hand falling away. Beads of sweat rolled down her skin.

"Shit," Sasuke realized. Forcing chakra into this particular seal wouldn't really do anything but help speed up the process.

And speed it up was exactly what the chakra did.

Sasuke stood, mildly fascinated by the whorls moving along her skin in ragged, crooked trails. Shaking the fascination, he quickly ran through his mind what could happen if something wasn't done soon. Possibly, she would go into a state of paralyzation, if his own experiences were universal.

He tried to recall any seals that would be useful, all the while feeling the sensation of his chakra being siphoned off, and stepped back to the other side of the room, suddenly feeling violated. The sensation lessened substantially.

And then he had it.

Kakashi, while training him, had taught him a seal that would come in handy for suppressing chakra. This rendition wouldn't be as well prepared, but it would do. If it didn't work, then Sasuke would have to leave the hotel until the seal was back in 'neutral.'

Unfortunately, the seal hadn't helped.

The only thing it did was stop it from eating chakra, which for Sasuke was a bonus, but for Arashiri meant more pain, and more effort to exert control. He left a note on the kitchen counter and went out into the street.

So here he was, looking at his map and seeing if he could kill off a couple more of their targets in the next three hours.

The nearest target was four blocks away, and second nearest was near the large black tower in the middle of the city. According to the map, that tower was where the Raikage lived and worked, along with his immediate family. Apparently, as the billboards said, some redheaded girl was missing and there was a need for volunteers to help search for her.

Odd.

He was in front of the target's apartment building, a five-storied, charcoal-colored, cap-shaped building, and stepped in, anticipating the kill.

Arashiri watched Sasuke scribble something on a sheet of paper and leave. She reached out towards him and made a small whimpering sound. What would make him do that? She summoned the willpower to stand up and walk over to the "kitchen's" counter, seeing a napkin or something with a short note scrawled across it.

"I'm going out to get a few more targets. Will be back in a few hours.

—Sasuke."

She whimpered softly, and tossed the napkin aside to go back to the couch and think, the surprise having focused her mind enough to gain control over the seal.


	4. Take

AN:LOL, shit. D: I can't stop drawing these two in weird fluffy things. ITS FUCKING ADDICTING!!

Ehh, I hope to end this story in a couple of chapters. xD Not too much going on. Just a bit of development and stuff. C:

So yeah, whatever, I think the chapters are going to get a bit longer.

* * *

When Sasuke returned, the room was dark. Dark seemed to be the simplest way to describe the room; the feeble light filtering in from the window only allowed him to see rough shapes and dim highlights. Then again, the room was fairly simple, layout wise, and it wouldn't take too much effort to maneuver around obstacles.

Sharingan flicked on in an attempt to find his possibly incapacitated charge. Or partner, rather. The bright glow of chakra three-fourths of a meter above the floor(and several metres away) suggested that Arashiri was probably in bed, and had turned off the electric lights to sleep after regaining control over herself.

Suggestion and actuality, however, are polar opposites, as far as Sasuke's concerned. So, without hesitation, he cautiously proceeded to the room's single king-size bed, and threw back the sheets with a slightly dramatized flourish. However, and slightly to his dismay(the action with killing off another three targets had given him a not-yet-finished adrenaline rush), the only person in bed was...Arashiri.

With a slight flutter of her lids and a flick of her wrist, the bedside floor lamp pulsed on at Arashiri's touch. "Wha-what are you doing...Sasuke-san...?"

"I didn't know if there was an intruder or not. You should really be more aware of possible holes in your defense." He made no mention of her using his name, or the fact that the metal bands were still around her wrists.

"Why did you leave?" She whispered.

"The mission. I wasn't going to stand around letting my chakra be siphoned off for the next several hours, so I took out three targets. Now we've got one left," Sasuke shot back, feeling slightly ruffled. He vaguely hoped Arashiri didn't think he looked like an owl.

"Oh. I'm...so sorry about that." She looked crestfallen.

"You don't have to apologize. It wasn't your fault. I'm fine." He even pulled aside part of his shirt to demonstrate his wellbeing.

"Are you sure?" Arashiri had sat up by now, and was nervously wringing her fingers together.

"Positive. The chakra drain works on a range of roughly three meters. I was over a kilometer away." Now he was just plain pissed. Nobody could feel any sort of pity for him.

As a credit to Sasuke's prediction, Arashiri backed away, looking even more upset. Probably because of his glare. But much to Sasuke's surprise, she replied.

"...I...I don't...feel sorry for you..."

"And I believe you. Do you wish for me to take care of the last one, so we can go back to Otogakure? I could, right now." Sasuke pulled a small fib, right there. He just needed to vent. She was just the nearest object.

"NO!" Arashiri's hand grasped the front of his shirt spasmodically. Tears poured down her cheeks.

He pretended that it didn't completely drain the blood from his face and the fight from his veins, that reaction. "Very well. Three more days, then, until we go home."

Then he stalked off to the couch, and left her to stew in fear. But he was stewing in fear, too. Probably not for the same reason, but fear was fear. And the current fear would be his referral of Otogakure as "home." It should never have come out.

-.-

The next day, both tried to act as if nothing had ever really happened. Sasuke was a better actor than Arashiri, though. It was quite obvious that she was extremely bothered by something. Probably the fact that she had accidentally revealed a chink in her armor, so to speak.

It didn't sit well with him that somebody could do something like that, could easily let slip something like that. No; it didn't sit well with him at all. It didn't help that perhaps she had heard him a few nights ago when he had another nightmare about Itachi. Or maybe she had woken up a moment after he did, and ninja reflexes caused some sort of built-in intruder warning at his shouts. That fact alone made him feel the slightest bit like a hypocrite. Sasuke didn't like hypocrites, and had no desire to become one.

It didn't sit well with Arashiri, either, that she had allowed that word, 'no', to slip out. It frightened her that she had let go of control in a brief moment. And it was all because of Sasuke. It was because Sasuke made her feel safe in some twisted way, and didn't treat her like some sort of experiment or lab rat. He belittled her, yes, but at least didn't feel the need to shackle her every night or whenever he wasn't in the immediate vicinity.

He trusted her, at least not to run away.

-.-.-

Sasuke glanced up from the map as Arashiri clunked something in front of him—a take-out platter of onigri and some kind of sushi. Lunch.

"You left without my permission?"

"You...l-looked...hungry..."She flushed slightly and looked away.

"At least ask." 'So I know where you are.'

Sasuke took note that Arashiri looked back at him with a look of mild astonishment. Was it that she had expected punishment? For bringing some cheap Kumo take-out? Sasuke bit into an onigri.

"Arashiri." He tested her name on his tongue. "You're going to eat too. And then we can take out the last target, and go back to Otogakure."

"I'm not hungry, Sasuke-san." Her lips curled in a thin, forced smile. "Don't...worry about me..."

"It would be stupidity not to eat anything." Sasuke pushed the platter to his left, and made a gesture for her to sit next to him on the couch after taking another Onigri.

She bit her lower lip and finally sat, using one of the pairs of chopsticks provided with the take-out to grab a piece of sushi.

"Eat it." Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "It's dead."

Arashiri ate it in two bites. Then grabbed a second one. Then a third.

"...You were lying then." He couldn't stop the question. "Why?"

No Answer. 'Fair enough.' Then:

"Why...are you so...curious, Sasuke-san?" She whispered, a blank expression on her face.

'Touché.'


	5. Fears

AN: LOL this chapter was FUN

asdkfhalsjkljs I LOVE THIS STORY FOR SOME REASON. NEVERMIND THAT SAUCY's IN IT.

it was actually easier to get to where I wanted it, actually. C:

ALSO ALSO, I changed le title. May have to change the summary, but meh. Whatever.

PLUS PLUS, I think next chapter we'll have soem romance-y stuff. And I'll change the rating to T. 8DD Cause this story's definitely not gonna be M, considering where It's going.

* * *

Arashiri was woken up by Sasuke's screaming again. It was always the word 'brother.' Now, she didn't know much about Sasuke, but she knew from the bingo book she was allowed to read that his brother's name was 'Itachi.' And the reason Itachi was in the bingo book was because he had pretty much massacred the entirety of the Uchiha clan.

Except Sasuke.

The Sasuke that she was looking at, with tears running down his cheeks, and hair plastered to his forehead with sweat. The stoic Sasuke. The Sasuke who, at the moment, was twisted in the couch's pull-out-bed's sheets, screaming and reaching out.

"Brother!! Brother!!"

Sasuke was unaware that she knew he had nightmares, as far as Arashiri knew. Or rather, he was unaware that she watched him every night as he slept, and inevitably had the same nightmare.

She was so caught up in her nightly reverie that Sasuke woke up before she could run back to bed and feign sleep. His eyes were half closed and his thrashing ceased, with his left arm stretched out. Sasuke's head turned to his left; Arashiri found herself on the receiving end of ... a blank stare. Almost as if he was contemplating what to say, what to do.

"You saw," he rasped. "Didn't you?"

He went on, ignoring her affirmative squeak. "Were you lying then, about having nightmares?"

"N-no!" Arashiri couldn't keep the hurt from her voice, despite the toneless-ness of Sasuke's.

"What do you have nightmares about?" He sat up and pushed himself backwards until he slumped against the cushioned back of the couch, then gestured for her to sit to his right.

She couldn't speak for a moment. Sasuke's gesture grew more urgent. So Arashiri slowly stepped over to where Sasuke indicated, and finally slouched herself against the juncture between arm and back.

"Answer me," Sasuke said.

Arashiri took a shaky breath. "M-mostly...Orochimaru...sama. Wh-what...he did to me."

"What did he do to you?"

She didn't speak for a few minutes.

"Ex..per...i...ments," Arashiri whispered, sounding out each syllable carefully. She buried her face in her hands.

"Orochimaru experimented on everyone," Sasuke murmured. "What makes you so special?"

She swallowed, and there was another silence as she thought.

"H-he..." Arashiri spoke from behind her hands. "He...t-tested...the...seal on me...f-first."

Sasuke digested this information. So she was the first subject that the Hiraishin seal was used on. The only survivor deemed fit enough to live, likely kept chained and shackled and under constant supervision at first, as Orochimaru experimented with the capacities of the seal. Now, she was simply kept chained, and supervised in certain situations—not much of an improvement, in his opinion.

He watched her sob. It was a keening noise. Soft as a kitten. He noticed even more the scratches and nicks in those metal bands. There were some scars extending past her elbows, and a couple were visible below the hem of her black shorts. So that was the purpose of them.

"And tested me against various o-opponents." Arashiri hiccupped a few times. Then she continued. "He had...Kabuto put th-these...things...on my arms.."

"Why metal?" But Sasuke thought he knew the answer.

"Kabuto s-said, to keep me from 'hurting myself.'" She sniffed. "I always try t-to remove them. Th-they're replaced..." She wiped at her eyes and managed to sit up a bit. "Every week."

It made sense, Sasuke thought; those bands were technically metal, and could cause sores if they weren't replaced every now and then. So those removal attempts were what caused the scratches and scars. Did she use a kunai or shuriken, perhaps even chipped bits of slate?

Arashiri swallowed and removed her hands completely from her face. She wanted to know exactly the contents of Sasuke's nightmare. It was only fair, in her mind. "Wh-what are your nightmares, then, Sasuke-san?"

Sasuke looked at her hard. There was no malice in her posture, tone, face, or eyes. Just curiosity accented with red-rimmed eyes and spots of color on cheeks.

"You already know what they are about," He said coolly. "Go back to bed."

Tomorrow they would return to Otogakure before the weekly movement. Sasuke figured he could forget all this in the flurry of moving

-.-

Arashiri ate very little in the morning. They would be leaving after taking care of the final target. At every spare moment, she glanced at Sasuke, who was poring over a world map he found somewhere. Sometimes, he glanced back. Sometimes, he didn't. Every time he did glance back, her stomach jumped in a rather pleasant way that she had never really experienced. She took another bite at the stale toast, and glanced back at Sasuke.

Sasuke had scarfed down some leftover onigri and a tomato before Arashiri woke, in order to ascertain a quick route to Otogakure with a world map he found. He thought it odd her nervous glances, and felt like returning them merely to humor her. In another situation, it would have been fairly annoying.

Another glance. Then again, he decided, it could be annoying. Very annoying.

Then she spoke.

"...Sasuke-san...you never said you wouldn't tell me your nightmares..."

"I never said I would." His eyes roved over the map until he found the route. With a hotel-provided pen, he traced over it. "Why do you ask?"

"I told you mine," she whispered.

"In a minute, then..." he growled. The pen was capped and the map was folded and tucked into a pocket.

'You're being very pushy. Did you take something?' he inwardly wondered, but didn't dare voice. Instead; "I suppose you should sit down. Away from me."

"Alright," Arashiri walked over to the bed and sat delicately on the edge.

Sasuke calmed himself. "I'm guessing you already know who my brother is?"

She nodded.

Without further ado, he summarized up his nightmares in one sentence. "My nightmares are about the massacre."

Short and sweet. No going on about Itachi, and being able to suppress the anger to grind out that single sentence he considered a great accomplishment. Inwardly, Sasuke begged her not to ask any questions and leave it at that.

She appeared to process it, and then seemed to consider something.

"So...we both have somebody we hate." Not a question.

"Yeah," Sasuke growled. "Anything else?"

"And...w-we...also have somebody we fear at the same time."

That one made him speechless. For a moment..

"So, Arashiri." Her name nearly stuck on his tongue. "Are you implying that I fear...him?" He choked on the last word.

"Yes." For a few moments, she watched Sasuke close his eyes and breathe heavily. He was angry.

"Then let me imply something. So, since, you hate Orochimaru, you probably can't stand the sight of him."

"Yes. That's correct." She didn't bother to mention that it wasn't so much the person, but his methods that she feared.

"And, since you fear him, then you also can't stand up to him." Oh, Sasuke knew how angry he was getting. "But I don't fear Itachi, because I can fucking attack him!"

"No...you fear him. You...turn your fear into anger, and then you lash out at him with that anger, and you hate him because you are afraid of him." 'That didn't make any sense,' she mentally added.

"...That...made no sense." But something had clicked as she stammered it out.

Something had clicked very loudly and annoyingly, and Sasuke wished he could forget what had clicked. But it clicked, and there was nothing he could do about it.


	6. Mirror

AN: SUP PPL?

Yeah i know sorry for not updating for so long ;o;

Needed to work some things out.

Esp. with the whole "dialogue" that's so important to this story

Also, this is the final chapter. That means this story is DONE. COMPLETE. Capice?

Of course, this also means that I'll probably end up continuing this in a sequel.(which I've already got a plot for.)

-.-.-

"You're lying," Sasuke muttered.

"Wh—what? I, I'm not—"

"Yes. You are." Sasuke smirked. "How can you hate someone without feeling anger or irritation? It's damn well impossible."

Arashiri looked away, biting her lower lip.

"In fact, you're incapable of it...of anger."

This time, she started to look...hurt.

"Stop lying!" the Uchiha growled, taking Arashiri by the jaw and pulling her face around so she was forced to look into his eyes. "Don't lie to me!"

She closed her eyes and flushed pink. A single tear, then a second, and then a third one slid down her cheeks. Her lips were twisted in a guilty expression, and for a moment they trembled. Sasuke's eyes widened and his mouth fell open a fraction. He hadn't thought it would be that easy to hit the mark; more specifically, get a reaction from that, judging from her past.

Sasuke glanced away.

"...Sorry. For yelling. At you." He was unused to apologizing.

Arashiri's eyes cracked open a bit. They glistened with unshed tears. "I'm sorry, too...for lying to you."

"Then, if you do not hate this person...Do you fear him?" In the right situations, fear could easily seem like anger. It was a powerful weapon, to be used against and by your enemies.

"Yes," she said in her small voice. "Yes."

"Then what do you fear?" He gripped her jaw a bit more firmly.

"I...I already told you...Oroc—"

"That's not it. We both fucking know that!" Sasuke cut her off. "Tell me...no. I think I know. It's that you're afraid of losing your use."

Sasuke let go of her jaw and stared at the white hotel wall, and listened to Arashiri get control over her emotions; he tried to do the same thing, only quietly. Inhale, exhale. Inhale, exhale... Her lack of reply implied that he was correct.

"Th...then what is it that you fear, Sasuke-san?" She quietly asked, almost afraid that he would say 'nothing,' even after the night before.

In a slightly garbled tone, he replied, "...The...same...thing," and it seemed as if he had slouched into himself.

"So...are we similar?"

"Yeah..."_Except our uses aren't the same._

"We...we could be of use to each other." Her expression seemed to lift. Sasuke didn't see because he was still looking at the wall.

"I suppose so. If you can help me kill Him. But it should be two-sided! A fair deal! How can I help you if you can't help me?! Dammit!!"

Sasuke fisted his hand and pounded it against the wall, his anger resurfacing. Arashiri glanced around, then touched her hand to the side of Sasuke's face nearest her. He looked back at her in utter surprise.

"I..."

"I.."

They started to speak at the same time. Arashiri nodded for him to speak first.

"I'll remove those things on your arms before we leave."

Sasuke pushed up Arashiri's long sleeves and used chakra to force the gauntlets to come apart. Carefully he removed them, trying not to scratch or pinch at Arashiri's arms.

"Th-thank...you..."

Arashiri examined her forearms with something akin to shock. They were pale and slightly bruised near the wrist. It seemed almost like they were glaring at her. She quickly dropped her arms so her sleeves would lower, and a tiny smile arose upon her lips.

"But how could I help you?"

Sasuke was silent for awhile. He wished to say something, but it was illogical and revealed too much. His answer needed logic; there was no logic to dictate his reply. Arashiri could have guessed it from the length of his silence. Finally, he simply decided to run with his first instinct.

"You can be of use to me by simply being there." Sasuke murmured.

"What do you mean?" Her gaze turned slightly hopeful. Was that a good sign?

"What does it sound like I mean?"

"I'd get my...hopes up by saying it."

"Then I'll say it for you."

And then he kissed her lightly on the lips.

"And I'll say it again."

He kissed her a second time.

She pulled back a little. "Then...what are you saying?" She whispered.

"I want you..." _And I need you..._

"How?"

"What does the word mean to you?"

"What does...it mean to you?" Then she smiled. It was a slightly sad smile, but it was genuine.

Sasuke kissed her a third time.

Arashiri reached up and touched his face. Sasuke held her hand there with his; his expression was serious.

"I'm not joking," he said.

"I'm not either," she replied, still smiling a bit.

"Then we understand each other."

- -

Sasuke strode down a corridor in the latest incarnation of Otogakure; it was time for another visit. Her cell seemed to be gradually being assigned further away from his quarters. If Orochimaru or Kabuto knew, it could be they wanted to put a stop to it, or give Sasuke more exercise. He could never guess their reasoning.

When he arrived at the cell, he crouched in front of it.

"You awake?"

Arashiri's hand found his. "Yes."

"I wanted to tell you that I'm going to be leaving for awhile," Sasuke murmured, leaning forward on his haunches to peer into the darkened cell. "to accomplish my goal."

"How long will you be gone, Sasuke-san?" Arashiri leaned forward a bit, and her face came into Sasuke's view.

Sasuke kissed her.

"I'm not sure. But I've been researching. Exploring. I have a lead."

"Are you sure?"

"One hundred percent."

"You're not just rounding up, are you?" She squeaked; her grip on his hand tightened.

"No. That's why I only visit you once every week."

"What happens if you don't succeed?" But she already knew the answer.

"Then you won't see me again," he said, in a flat tone. "ever."

With a last kiss, Sasuke stood up fully, and began making his way out of the complex.


End file.
